In Extracorporeal Shock Wave Therapy (ESWT), a wave is produced by a small explosion generated underwater inside an ‘applicator’. This wave is focused through a lens and transmitted into the tissue.

Chattanooga's Intelect Focus Shockwave device electromagnetically generates an extracorporeal shock wave, which produces a high pressure peak in a very short amount of time (<2μs). This can penetrate deep into the tissue, up to approximately 4.7", with a precise focus on a small target, for treating heel pain due to chronic proximal plantar fasciitis.